Two years ago, Boulder architect Fenno Hoffman ran for Boulder City Council on a platform that included increasing urban density -- an often-taboo topic in a city that has tough growth restrictions.

He finished the race ninth among the 13 candidates, but said the positive reception he received to his message about Boulder needing to take responsibility for "exporting the impact" of its mountain views onto neighboring communities made him want to run again.

The Camera this week has profiled each of the 13 people running for Boulder City Council this fall. This is the final profile. See video interviews of each candidate and full questionnaires at dailycamera.com/election .

"It's really hard for Boulder to talk about this issue," he said.

This time, the 53-year-old East Coast transplant said his message is the same but more candidates are starting to talk about density and Boulder's growth.

And that, he said, is progress.

"We could become our own little Nirvana with 100-percent green power and all millionaires and no problems, but that doesn't translate to anywhere else," he said. "I'd rather see us tackle the problems of workforce housing and developing these neighborhood centers along transit corridors."

The city's growth restrictions, he said, have actually exacerbated many of its own problems. Limiting development, for example, means more people have to commute into the city. That leads to additional greenhouse-gas emissions.

Hoffman, who currently serves on the Downtown Advisory Board, said he would work to educate the public and the rest of the council about the impacts that ordinances and other decisions have on neighboring communities.

"When we defend a mountain view from the drive-up of a McDonalds, what's the cost?" he said. "Boulder can be Aspen if it wants. It's a choice. But I don't think people are aware of the consequences of a lot of things we think are so groovy in Boulder."

Development issues

Fenno Hoffman (MARK LEFFINGWELL)

Hoffman was a staunch opponent of the city's compatible development ordinance, which limits the size of houses and is designed to eliminate "pop-and-scrape development."

He said the contentious debate over that ordinance was indicative of the politics in Boulder, where the loudest person is heard the clearest.

"I felt like that project was driven by a very small handful of very vocal activists," he said.

To counter that behavior, Hoffman suggested that members of the public should be more educated about issues before they come to speak to the leaders instead of "just sort of ranting and raving."

He said the council is responsible for setting that tone by having thoughtful debates.

Also on Hoffman's list of priorities is having more trees planted along Boulder's streets.

"I'd rather we focus on planting street trees than a lot of attention on telling people they can't cut down trees in their backyards," Hoffman said. "They are one of the basic ingredients of making a place walkable in a hot summer."

'On the fence'

Hoffman said he is "on the fence" about whether to support ballot issues 2B and 2C, which would give the city permission to pursue starting a municipal utility.

"I think it's great to explore the options, but I worry about large projects," he said. "It's always too early to tell and then too late to stop... I'm worried that this project could become one of those."

But no matter what voters decide, he said the city will need a set of pragmatic leaders -- not ideologues.

"You really want a council with sharp pencils and clear, rational, balanced evaluation of what we're seeing," he said. "Council is going to have to be exceptionally level headed to get through this without making big mistakes."

Hoffman said he's that voice of reason.

"I get the feeling a lot of people from a lot of different camps could see me sitting on council and they could sleep at night," he said.

Hoffman has earned endorsements this year by the Boulder Chamber, the Boulder Outdoor Coalition and Friends Interested in Dogs and Open Space.

Rebecca Dickson, a member of the Sierra Club, said the group did not endorse Hoffman because he failed to respond to interview requests. A representative for PLAN-Boulder County said the group made the tactical decision to only endorse three candidates this year, and Hoffman simply didn't rise to the top of the stack.

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